Abhanga 303
This is one of Tukaram's harshest abhangs on a specific category: those who scold the bhakta and dislike the kathā. Three rules:
The verse
छळी विष्णुदासा कोणी । त्याची अमंगळ वाणी ॥१॥ येऊं न द्यावा समोर । अभागी तो दुराचार ॥ध्रु.॥ नावडे हरिकथा । त्याची व्यभिचारीण माता ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे याति । भ्रष्ट तयाचि ते मति ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: One who chaḷī the Vishnu-dāsa — his is amangaḷa-vāṇī. Don't let (him) come samōra — abhāgya, dur-ācāra. Doesn't like hari-kathā — his mātā is vyabhicāriṇī. Tuka says: the jāti — bhraṣṭa — that mati.
मराठी: छळी विष्णुदासा कोणी — त्याची अमंगळ वाणी. येऊं न द्यावा समोर — अभागी तो दुराचार. नावडे हरिकथा — त्याची व्यभिचारीण माता. तुकाराम म्हणतात — याति भ्रष्ट तयाचि ते मति.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| छळी विष्णुदासा कोणी | "one who chaḷī (scolds / vexes / persecutes) the Vishnu-dāsa**" |
| त्याची अमंगळ वाणी | "his amangaḷa-vāṇī (impure speech)" |
| येऊं न द्यावा समोर | "don't let (him) come samōra (face)" |
| अभागी तो दुराचार | "abhāgya (unfortunate / sinful), dur-ācāra (wrong-conduct)" |
| नावडे हरिकथा | "doesn't like hari-kathā**" |
| त्याची व्यभिचारीण माता | "his mātā is vyabhicāriṇī**" |
| याति भ्रष्ट तयाचि ते मति | "the jāti — bhraṣṭa — that mati**" |
What it means
A sharp anti-Vishnu-dāsa-scolder abhang. Three accusations:
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छळी विष्णुदासा कोणी — त्याची अमंगळ वाणी — one who scolds Vishnu-dāsa — his amangaḷa-vāṇī. The first-marker: amangaḷa-vāṇī (impure / inauspicious speech). The Vishnu-dāsa-scolder's speech is amangaḷa — the speech itself is the diagnostic.
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येऊं न द्यावा समोर — अभागी तो दुराचार — don't let face you — abhāgya, dur-ācāra. The boundary-rule. Don't let such a person come into your face — they are abhāgya (sinful) and dur-ācāra (wrong-conduct-doer). Maintain the boundary.
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नावडे हरिकथा — त्याची व्यभिचारीण माता — doesn't like hari-kathā — his mother is vyabhicāriṇī. This is the harshest line. Vyabhicāriṇī — adulteress. Tukaram is not literally claiming the person's mother is an adulteress; he is using the strongest classical insult to mark the gravity-of-not-liking-hari-kathā. The hari-kathā-aversion is so structural-disorder that it parallels the deepest social-disorder. (The vyabhicāra-image is Tukaram's gravity-marker — par-nārī-gamana = mother-mating in 282; here non-liking-hari-kathā produces the same maternal-disorder claim**.)
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तुका म्हणे याति भ्रष्ट तयाचि ते मति — Tuka says: the jāti is bhraṣṭa — that mati. The closing-claim. Jāti here in the quality-sense (compare 288's vi-jāti by pāṇī). Bhraṣṭa — corrupt, fallen. The mati (mind / intellect) is bhraṣṭa; the jāti-quality is corrupt. The outer-pāpa-act (scolding Vishnu-dāsa, disliking hari-kathā) reflects the inner-quality-corruption.
[T]
For someone today
This is one of Tukaram's harshest abhangs on a specific category: those who scold the bhakta and dislike the kathā. Three rules:
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Recognize the amangaḷa-vāṇī. The Vishnu-dāsa-scolder's speech is impure. The vāṇī (speech-quality) is the first diagnostic. Listen to how someone speaks about real-bhaktas and real-kathā; the speech-quality reveals the inner-quality.
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Boundary: don't let face you. Yēūm na dyāvā samōra. Don't let such a person have face-access. Note: this is not about attacking them; it is about not granting them face-access. Maintain the boundary. (Compare 213's bhedakas tāḍaṇa is the deva's sevā; 277's don't show-me-such.)
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Hari-kathā-aversion is the deepest disorder. Nāvaḍē hari-kathā — vyabhicāriṇī mātā. The strongest-language critique. The not-liking-hari-kathā is not a preference; it is a structural-disorder that goes back to the maternal-source. The vyabhicāra-image is the gravity-marker. (Reading: don't moderate the diagnosis; the aversion to hari-kathā is that-grave**.)
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Bhraṣṭa-jāti is reflected in bhraṣṭa-mati*. The outer-act reflects the inner-state. Their mind itself is corrupted; the outer-acts (scolding, aversion) are downstream*.
For today: recognize the Vishnu-dāsa-scolder by the amangaḷa-vāṇī; maintain the boundary (don't grant face-access); don't moderate the diagnosis of hari-kathā-aversion as a deep disorder; recognize that the outer-act reflects the inner-mati-corruption.
This abhang is important even though harsh: it names a real category and gives the boundary-rule. Not all who appear inattentive to bhakti are in this category; this is specifically those who actively scold the Vishnu-dāsa and have aversion to hari-kathā — that is the structural-disorder.
The vyabhicāriṇī-mother image should be read as Tukaram's classical-gravity-marker, not literal-claim about anyone's mother. (Modern readers may find this language jarring; the register is the strongest classical-insult to mark gravity.)
मराठी: ही तुकारामांच्या harshest abhangs पैकी एक — specific category बद्दल: जे bhakta ला scold करतात आणि kathā ला dislike करतात. तीन rules:
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Amangaḷa-vāṇī ओळखा. Vishnu-dāsa-scolder ची speech impure. Vāṇī (speech-quality) first diagnostic. कोणी real-bhaktas आणि real-kathā बद्दल कसं बोलतं ऐका; speech-quality inner-quality reveal करते.
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Boundary: समोर येऊ देऊ नका. येऊं न द्यावा समोर. अशा व्यक्तीला face-access देऊ नका. Note: हे त्यांच्यावर हल्ला बद्दल नाही; face-access न देणं. Boundary maintain करा.
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Hari-kathā-aversion deepest disorder. नावडे हरिकथा — व्यभिचारीण माता. Strongest-language critique. Hari-kathā न-आवडणं preference नाही; structural-disorder जो maternal-source पर्यंत जातो. Vyabhicāra-image gravity-marker. (Diagnosis moderate करू नका; hari-kathā-aversion तेवढं-grave**.)
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Bhraṣṭa-jāti bhraṣṭa-mati* मध्ये reflected. Outer-act inner-state reflect करतो. त्यांचा मनच corrupt आहे; outer-acts (scolding, aversion) downstream*.
आज: Vishnu-dāsa-scolder ला amangaḷa-vāṇī ने ओळखा; boundary maintain करा (face-access न द्या); hari-kathā-aversion deep disorder आहे — diagnosis moderate करू नका; outer-act inner-mati-corruption reflect करतो ओळखा.
ही ओवी harsh असली तरी महत्त्वाची: real category नाव सांगते आणि boundary-rule देते. सर्व-जे-bhakti ला inattentive दिसतात ते या category त नाहीत; विशेषतः जे actively Vishnu-dāsa ला scold करतात आणि hari-kathā ला aversion ठेवतात — तेच structural-disorder.
Vyabhicāriṇī-mother image तुकारामांचं classical-gravity-marker म्हणून वाचावं, कुणाच्या-आईबद्दल literal-claim नाही. (Modern readers ला language jarring वाटू शकते; register strongest classical-insult — gravity mark करायला.)
Where this applies
- Amangaḷa-vāṇī is the Vishnu-dāsa-scolder's first marker.
- Don't let face-access. Boundary-rule.
- Hari-kathā-aversion is structural-disorder. Not preference.
- Bhraṣṭa-mati underlies the bhraṣṭa-acts. Inner-source.